A holiday mainstay has made a comeback to Pasadena for a new generation of families after more than ten years in the dark.
The family didn’t put up the old school display for a long time since it was ruined by vandals. George Courville had put it together at his Monte Vista Street home.
“The house was vandalized three years in a row, and at $800 to $1,200 dollars a year to keep repairing everything, it kinda go the best of me,” Courville stated.
One of the incidents, which was reported by KCAL News in 2009, involved a gang of people using baseball bats to demolish the cherished exhibit. The Courville family opted to put up their display for the final time that year, ending a custom that began when his father first set it up in 1964.
Courville claims that without the yearly event, he felt empty inside.
“It was enormous. “You know,” he replied, “the feeling was beyond words. “I had lost pretty much my life.”
This year, he made the decision to return and once more filled their front yard with vintage decorations, many of which he had personally saved.
A neighbor and former Disney employee who worked as a mechanical engineer created additional decorations.
To the joy of visitors who flocked to his house to look around, he claims that even though the vandals crushed his heart all those years ago, they were never able to destroy his Christmas spirit.
“Christmas is more than simply a single day; it holds great meaning for me. We can all feel wonderful, set aside our differences, and cherish our friendship throughout this season,” Courville remarked.
Every evening from 6 to 10 p.m., he switches on the lights, but on Friday and Saturday nights, he leaves them on for an additional hour.
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